The beat on success of Farmer Foot Drums
By Samantha Graves
Sun contributor
Pete and Kate Farmer never imagined they’d one day produce foot drums for the likes of Les Claypool (Primus), Ben Bridewell (Band of Horses) and Garrett Dutton (G. Love & Special Sauce). The couple was busy working on building careers in education. And yet a downturn in the economy spurred a decision that would lead to a thriving small business located in Cedar.
Before the business, Pete built foot drums as a hobby. While he had no formal training in woodworking, Pete had grown up with true “do it yourselfer” parents, who in building several houses over the course of their lives, opened the door for Pete to explore the craft.
One afternoon, while in his woodworking shop, Pete was listening to music, tapping in cadence with a song, when he began to wonder how he might add layers of depth to that simple tapping with the tools available in his workshop. The result was the first ever Farmer Foot Drum.
Like any craftsman, Farmer saw room for improvement, and decided to build another drum. Over time, he created a number of foot drums, each an enhanced design over the one prior. This process of invention is how Farmer has continued to build and expand a successful product line.
“I’ve never taken a formal design or engineering class or worked under a mentor,” explained Farmer, “It has always been my path to do things the slow and hard way, mostly working by myself. I find great satisfaction in solving problems and learn the most by making mistakes and coming up with my own solutions. It’s a never ending process.”
The hobby became the impetus for a full-fledged business when the Farmers faced tough times in 2008.
“I lost my teaching job when school budgets were slashed, and that really was the catalyst to give this business a more serious go,” said Pete. Kate was still teaching, which gave the family enough of an income for Pete to explore his passion. Farmer Musical Instrument Company was born, today better known as Farmer Foot Drums.
“I had the time to devote to building the drums and the business. I worked days, nights, and weekends, and learned every facet of running a small business as I went,” explained Pete.
Growing business, growing family
Kate met Pete when he was building his first foot drum, “I’ve witnessed it grow from a hobby to an all-consuming passion and business.” As the business grew, so did the demands of family and a newly thriving instrument company. Kate found herself helping with bookkeeping. As the business expanded, so did Pete and Kate’s family. In a short span of time they had moved the business to Michigan with three young children.
“I didn’t think finding a teaching job, and the huge time and energy responsibilities that come with it, would work for our family. I quickly came to see that being home all day wasn’t working for me either,” said Kate.
When the business grew enough to require extra help, Kate realized she was the best qualified person to fill the need, “I was fully vested, understood the business, and had most of the skills needed. Now, I’m to come out to the shop, tackle projects, use some of my professional skills, and have a direct influence on the business that is turning into our entire livelihood.”
Striking the right balance between raising a family and working, Kate said, “I am very happy to be sharing in all of this with my partner, rather than watching (and stressing) from the sidelines.”
Music scene
“We both grew up playing and listening to music,” Kate said. “When we first met, we spent a lot of time playing music and writing our own songs.” She said running the business now eats up a lot of performance time, so the Farmers brought the music to their studio. When possible, they host tiny-desk style concerts, with proceeds from ticket sales going directly to the musicians and sound crew.
“We have the utmost admiration for the lesser-known musicians and the dedication and determination it takes to get up on a stage and perform 200 days a year and we’re happy to be a part of the music scene, connecting with musicians from all genres around the world,” said Kate.
Pete and Kate went from playing on the streets of Seattle to the tiny, tucked away town of Cedar. Inspiration in the form of cherry pits and zebra mussels have drummed up some new ideas for locally sourced percussive instruments. Once a waste product, both materials can be used in handcrafted rattles and shakers.
“We are excited to be in a place where there is room for us and hope that we can become a part of the Northern Michigan music scene in our way. There are several local musicians here who play our instruments and it is so gratifying to have face-to-face relationships with our customers, turned friends.”
Product line
Farmer Foot Drums currently offers an array of percussive instruments designed to complement a range of musical styles. The flagship product, a FootDrum Kit, is a complete drum kit played entirely with two feet. It includes a bass, snare, hi-hats, jingle, shaker, and allows for additional add-ons. The sound is one thing; the craftsmanship makes it a work of art to behold.
The Farmer Foot Drums product line also includes the DownBeat Pedal, a product that utilizes rare-earth magnets in place of springs for consistent, smooth action and no breaking parts, quiet during recordings, and allows you to attach shakers, tambourine, blocks, and even cowbell to improve the breadth of the sounds accompanying the music. The company also sells a StompDrum Bass, an acoustic and ultra-portable bass drum, a BackBeat Kit, a drum kit you literally carry on your back (think new era one-man band), as well as the ArchTop Harp Holder, a new take on the old harmonica holder.
Product prices range from under $100 to a few thousand dollars. And Kate says it’s well worth the investment, “Anyone can order cheap drums online, but they won’t be made by hand, in a workshop, and you won’t be able to connect and communicate with the people who built it.”
Expanding customer base
Instead, the farmers focus on building relationships with their customers. “We focus on developing high-quality, cleverly designed, customizable instruments and provide responsive personal communication and service,” explained Kate. After all, she went on to say, the feedback they get from those customers is invaluable in the continued development of products. Plus, she adds, “We know we are doing something right because we’ve got a lot of loyal, repeat customers who’ve stuck with us along the way.”
Loyal indeed, with a growing list of local and national acts utilizing Farmer Foot Drums, the business has grown steadily for the past eight years. “We are lucky to live in the era of the Internet with access to musicians from around the world; from Japan to New Zealand, from Sweden to Brazil,” said Pete. “It feels like we’re hitting a critical mass and the word is spreading.”
Though the majority of their customer base are guitar players, Kate said not all customers are necessarily stage performers. Music teachers, churches, dance accompanists, drum circles and therapists are also included in the growing list foot drum-seekers.
“What we make isn’t for everyone, but there is definitely a niche market of musicians hungry for what we make,” she concedes. “And thankfully there are people out there who appreciate knowing about our family business and make a point to buy from us because they believe in what we are trying to do.”
Looking ahead
Farmer Foot Drums is still growing, said Kate. “We are thrilled to be on our steady course and would love to be a thriving small business with a small team of passionate and invested employees.” Pete has ideas for new instruments and plans to “shake up the world of traditional musical instruments with fresh designs,” breathing new life into old world designs.
Learn more about Farmer Foot Drums by visiting the website FootDrums.com, or experience the music first-hand at the next in-studio concert on June 6, featuring Eric Jaqua and Will Love of the Pistol Whips. The concert will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $9 and available online.
